| Adrian C. Wilcox School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Santa Clara, California, United States | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1961 |
| Grades | 9-12 |
| Number of students | 1952 |
| School Color(s) | Black and Gold |
| Mascot | Charlie the Charger[1] |
| Website | [1] |
Adrian C. Wilcox High School is a public school located in Santa Clara, California. It is one of five high schools serving those living within the boundaries of the Santa Clara Unified School District.[2] The school is named after Adrian C. Wilcox, who served on the Santa Clara Union High School Board of Trustees for over 30 years. Wilcox was first accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) in 1966 and is accredited through 2009. In April 2005, Wilcox officially became a California Distinguished School.
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Construction of the school began in the late 1950s. The school was named for the ranking member of the Santa Clara Union High School Board of Trustees, Adrian C. Wilcox. Contrary to popular belief the land for the school was not donated by Wilcox. The school opened its doors in the fall of 1961 to what would become its first graduating class, the class of 1964, which entered as Sophomores. The first graduating class to attend Wilcox for all four years was the Class of 1965.
The student body was split when Peterson High School (named after Marian A. Peterson) opened in the district and then later recombined when Peterson and Buchser High School (named after Emil R. Buchser, School Superintendent when Buchser High School opened. His son, Emil R. Buchser, Jr. was the first principal of Wilcox) were converted into middle schools. At that time, the student body voted to change the name of the mascot, newspaper, and yearbook, along with the school colors, to be more inclusive of the new students. The original mascot for Wilcox was The Warrior, the school colors were Green and Gold, the newspaper was The War Chants, and the yearbook was The Promethean. Even though those have changed, the original school song (All Hail Our Alma Mater) and fight song (Fight On Wilcox) are still in use today. They were both composed by Mr. James Paris, the first music teacher at the school. (Mr. Mike Patterakis was not credited as a contributor to either song.)
The school saw a total of seven students, (either students at the time, former students, or alumni) Killed In Action (K.I.A.)during the Vietnam War. They are Doyle W. Clark (Class of 1965, K.I.A. 12 Nov 68, age 21), Fredric B. Davis (Class of 1965, wounded in action during the 1968 Tet Offensive he died on 14 Jan 73 after being in a coma for several years, age 25), Alvin "John" Wesolowski (member of the Class of 1965 though he transferred to Homestead High School prior to graduation, K.I.A. 30 Jan 68, age 20), John R. Kunkel (Class of 1966, K.I.A. 3 Jan 69, age 21), Michael W. Issenmann (Class of 1967 K.I.A. 17 Sep 68, age 19), John E. Young (Class of 1968, K.I.A. 1 Apr 70, age 20), and Kenneth J. Auston (Class of 1969, K.I.A. 12 Mar 70, age 18). The body of each one was recovered and returned home.
In 2001, former head custodian Joe Miller undertook an ambitious project to honor the school's past. The idea came about when Miller located several panoramic class pictures while clearing out a dusty cabinet. As a result of this discovery, he decided to make a wall consisting of the pictures of every graduating class in school history. After successfully tracking down the nine pictures not in the cabinet (by way of e-mails and telephone calls to past students), the Alumni Wall was completed and dedicated on 7 November 2003. Now, the panoramic photo of each subsequent graduating class is added to the wall, which is housed on walls on the inside of the school's main building, just outside the main offices.
Miller is also responsible for the Wilcox Vietnam Memorial Plaque, which lists only the six Killed In Action who actually graduated from Wilcox, and is currently working on a Walk of Fame in front of the flag pole honoring each graduating class. Additionally, Miller had a photo of each KIA enlarged and laminated. These photos are on permanent display in an American History classroom so that their sacrifice will never be forgotten.
In recognition of his efforts, Miller was presented with a plaque and certificate by a representative of the Class of 1966 Reunion Committee making him an honorary class member and alumni in a special ceremony given as part of a student rally on January 26, 2007.
In February 2005, the Mission City Center for the Performing Arts, a building constructed adjacent to the school and across Calabazas Creek from the main campus, in an area that was the original Student Parking Lot, opened.
The school year typically begins in late August, consists of 180 school days, and usually ends on the second Friday of June.
The school newspaper is known as The Scribe and usually publishes eight issues per year.
The school yearbook is known as The Phoenix.
Extracurricular groups include a marching band (known as the Black and Gold Regiment), orchestra, drill team (Chargerettes), cheerleaders (Spirit Squad), a theater troupe (Wilcox Stage Company,) Color guard, a dance team, a debate team, and a choir. They also have a winterguard, which is solo colorguard, and a winter percussion program.
Some of the extracurricular clubs include Montebello Ridge Club (an environmental outdoors organization), Gay Straight Alliance, Chinese Club, 日本語 Club, Best Buddies, Thespian Club, Garbage Crew, Key Club, Interact Club, Cycling Club, Math Club, Ping Pong Club, Biology Club, Physics Club, Black Student Union, Latino Student Union, Art Club, Creative Writing Club, Travel Club, New Life Campus Outreach Club, Middle Eastern Club, Korean Club, Indian Club, Muslim Student Association (MSA), CSF (California Scholarship Foundation), Vietnamese Student Association, Martial Arts Club, PHHS (Pre-professional Health Honor Society)and WAC (World Affairs Club).
Each class is also designated a class color. The current colors are:
Class of Year Class Color 2012 Seniors Green 2013 Juniors Yellow 2014 Sophomores Red 2015 Freshmen Blue
A way for the students to display class spirit and unity, the colors are mainly used for the annual battle of the classes, known as Fantastics. Fantastics was formed as a spirit activity first held in 1995. Held in March, all classes compete against each other in various physical contests (such as a tug of war). The competitors wear shirts with the color of their class.
The colors are on a four-year rotation, with the color of the graduating seniors being handed off to the upcoming year's freshmen.
Also to show more unity, the following class colors are "sister" classes. Yellow and Blue are Sister Classes and Red and Green are Sister Classes.
Wilcox competes in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League (SCVAL), a league which is split into two divisions: De Anza and El Camino.
Sports offered at Wilcox include: Fall: Football, Cross Country, Girls Volleyball, Girls Tennis, Water Polo Winter: Basketball, Wrestling, Soccer Spring: Track and Field, Baseball, Softball, Swimming and Diving, Boys Volleyball, Golf, Badminton, Boys Tennis
Wilcox is known for their Baseball program, which has successfully won CCS multiple times now. Over the years they have had four CCS Player's of the Year: Roberto Lopez '91 and '92, Erik Dean '00, Daniel Romero '02, and Donald Brandt '04. In the 2008-2009, the girls Water Polo Team had their first ever perfect regular season before losing in CCS. In 2007, Wilcox's Badminton Team came third overall in their league. Players Max Jo and Matt Yim lost to Independence High School Team in the finals taking 2nd place in CCS. In the 2008-09 campaign, Wilcox sent Richard Jo and Kenyon Kubo Jr. to the Badminton CCS finals where they won the championships in two sets. The Wilcox wrestling team went undefeated in the El Camino League in 2007-2008 season, winning the League champions. In 2008-2009 Wilcox football team made it to the C.C.S Finals against Menlo Atherton. The Chargers fought hard but lost by three points. And in the 2009-2010 season, Wilcox played against Los Gatos in the CCS finals, and lost by 1 point in overtime. In 2008-2009 the Wilcox Track and Field Team made history, both the girls and boys team went undefeated in their League. In 2009-2010 the boys varsity team went undefeated once again, winning 2 years in a row. Pulling it off again, the boy's varsity team went undefeated once again in 2010-2011, making it a 3 win streak. The team went 6-0 and won majority of the races at League Finals. So far nineteen members of the Track and Field Team are in the SCVAL Finals. In 2010-11 The Wilcox football team had its best regular season with a record of 7-3 but lost in CCS Division II semifinals to Willow Glen, 49-34.